Snacking Help

[crewgirl]

I am on Day 15 and doing well. All Whole 30-compliant foods. The one challenge I still have is with snacking. I am doing MUCH better - sometimes not snacking at all between meals, but I still want an after dinner snack (but pears and some home roasted spicy nuts is better than popcorn and chocolate) and sometimes I want an afternoon snack at work (dried fruit or an apple). Can someone explain to me the science behind why I should not snack? Does it mess up metabolism and slow down the fat-burning process?

I know that my meals need to be substantial enough to last for 5 hours but sometimes I am just hungry.

Thanks!

[heyitskristin]

I am interested in knowing the answer as well! Thanks for posting this!

[Tom Denham]

The hormonal process involved in digestion follows a certain rhythm that fits neatly with eating about every 5 hours. Certain processes start and run for a while, then another process starts as a previous one ends, etc. When you eat more often, you start a process of digestion while other processes are still running. The system gets more "complicated." It is better to eat than to go hungry between meals, but it is ideal in terms of your internal rhythms to space your meals apart. That is why we say, getting hungry between meals is a sign that you needed to eat more at your previous meals or you needed more protein or more fat. Your body runs more efficiently when your meals have space between them. 

 

These hormonal processes have wide implications. One reason we ask people to eat a hearty breakfast within an hour of waking is that can help with sleeping better that night. Ideally, your cortisol levels are rising first thing in the morning. Cortisol makes you hungry and makes you alert. Ideally, your cortisol levels are up during the day and begin to fade into the evening and are low at night. When your hormonal rhythms are off, cortisol is high at night, making sleep difficult. One of the best ways to get your cortisol in its proper rhythm is to get up in the morning and eat. 

 

So basically, snacking needlessly does do some things to your metabolism that can slow fat loss. Eating between meals is not awful, but it is not ideal. 

 

I ate 4-5 times per day for at least the first year I ate Whole30-style. I am a slow learner sometimes. Nowadays, I can hardly imagine eating more than three times per day even though I am relatively muscular. 

[GFChris]

Do you have It Starts with Food?  It has the details and science behind this recommendation.

Essentially, it's to encourage an optimal hormonal response. From the book: "Having a four- to five-hour break between meals gives glucagon time to do its job and keeps leptin levels normalized. Of course, if you work exceptionally long days or have an especially active metabolism, you may end up needing four meals a day."

If you find the need to snack between meals, it can frequently be an indication that you need to increase your portion sizes at earlier meals. So play around with portion sizes: feel free to post 2-3 days worth of your log here, with amounts, so folks can give you feedback.

 

If you make changes and still find you're hungry between meals (hungry = you could eat steamed fish and broccoli), have a mini-meal that includes a protein and fat. Nuts are a fat source on a Whole30. Save your 1-2 daily servings of fruit (serving = the size of your fist) to enjoy with or immediately after your main meals.

A side-note: watch roasted nuts - confirm that they are roasted in a compliant oil.  (some can be in peanut or rice bran oil, both of which are non-compliant)

[crewgirl]

Good information, thanks! The nuts were raw and I roasted them myself and then tossed them in olive oil and spices. I do know to look for non-compliant oils!

Yesterday:

Meal 1 (8 AM): sunrise scramble (3 oz. ground turkey, 2 eggs, 1/3 cup sweet potato, 1/3 cup apple) and decaf black coffee.

Meal 2 (12:30): buffalo chicken salad and carrot cumin salad (meal is from a company that delivers strict paleo food to my gym).

snack: blueberry RX bar (I meant to only have half but I ended up eating 1/2 at 2 and 1/2 at 4).

Meal 3 (7 PM): Thai basil beef (1/3 lb flank steak, green beans, peppers)

Snack (8:30): 1/2 pear and roasted nuts

Then I felt hungry before going to bed and I ate a banana with a tsp of almond butter (I usually don't do this but now you can see why I am posting about snacks).

Today, for Meal 1 I had 2 HB eggs. 1/2 avocado, and 3 campari tomatoes. No snack. Meal two was chicken thighs with sauteed cabbage/carrots (from the paleo meal company called Power Supply).

Maybe I need to add a fruit to each meal.

Thanks.

[jent103]

For M1 - first of all, I made that scramble for the first time this weekend and it was delicious! Second of all, you need more veggies than just 1/3 cup sweet potato - I had mine with a big kale salad on the side, for more vegetables plus a little bit of fat. The template suggests a palm or two of protein and then the rest of a dinner plate full of vegetables - 1/3 cup sweet potato isn't enough on its own.

 

M2 - how big are those servings? And did the salad have fat with it?

 

M3 - did you have any added fat? Cooking fat generally doesn't "count" because a lot of it gets left in the pan.

 

I find that when I don't have enough fat at my meals, I get hungry earlier than I do otherwise. I'd add fat before I add fruit - fruit is tasty and nutritious but doesn't keep me full.

[GFChris]

I agree with everything jent103 said. (and great that you're on top of reading labels - many folks have been "bitten" by bad oils with their roasted nuts)

 

In addition, save your 1-2 daily servings of fruit to have with or immediately after your main meals - not as part of a snack.  For example, instead of having a pear with your nuts, have a protein such as a hard-boiled egg or leftover beef/chicken.

[crewgirl]

The delivered meals are 5 oz. of protein and the vegetable fill up about half of the container (these are like rectangular chinese take out containers). I've relied on them intstead of having to prep my lunches - but maybe I need to supplement. Sometimes they keep me full, sometimes not.

What kind of supplemental fat would you recommend with the thai basil beef (or anything)? Nuts? What are the options other than avocados?

I could eat fruit with meal but usually I'm not hungry after I just had the main dish...but of course I end up wanting it two hours later.

[GFChris]

What kind of supplemental fat would you recommend with the thai basil beef (or anything)? Nuts? What are the options other than avocados?

 

Here's a copy of the meal template: it includes some of the more popular fat options http://whole9life.com/book/ISWF-Meal-Planning-Template.pdf

I personally love olives: kalamata (Greek) ones especially.

[jent103]

Chris, I wish you could teach me to learn to love olives! I really hate them. I love mayo, though, and add that as a dip or a base for a sauce to a lot of meals. If you like coconut, that might go nicely with the Thai beef.

[crewgirl]

I love olives. So you are telling me to eat more fat? What a concept! I have not been including added fat in my meals. Sounds like I need to add this even if it does not "go" with what I am eating:)

[jent103]

Yes! Do it! It will make you feel better and - bonus - it's delicious. I laugh evilly and/or shake my head in pity at my 80s/90s self every time I gleefully add fat to something.

[Guest]

Yes, add it!  If you don't want olives or avocado, I'd vote for cashews in your thai basil.  Just a closed handful as part of the meal.  Sunshine sauce is fun, too.  Or a mayo based salad dressing on a side salad.

 

And, did I read 2 eggs as all of the breakfast protein?  I'd say your meals need a boost all around for you to make it through the day without snacking.  That, and the steamed fish and broccoli test.  If you aren't that hungry, know that you have enough willpower not to accidentally eat something or give in to a craving.

[Marceeruns]

Good information, thanks! The nuts were raw and I roasted them myself and then tossed them in olive oil and spices. I do know to look for non-compliant oils!

Yesterday:

Meal 1 (8 AM): sunrise scramble (3 oz. ground turkey, 2 eggs, 1/3 cup sweet potato, 1/3 cup apple) and decaf black coffee.

Meal 2 (12:30): buffalo chicken salad and carrot cumin salad (meal is from a company that delivers strict paleo food to my gym).

snack: blueberry RX bar (I meant to only have half but I ended up eating 1/2 at 2 and 1/2 at 4).

Meal 3 (7 PM): Thai basil beef (1/3 lb flank steak, green beans, peppers)

Snack (8:30): 1/2 pear and roasted nuts

Then I felt hungry before going to bed and I ate a banana with a tsp of almond butter (I usually don't do this but now you can see why I am posting about snacks).

Today, for Meal 1 I had 2 HB eggs. 1/2 avocado, and 3 campari tomatoes. No snack. Meal two was chicken thighs with sauteed cabbage/carrots (from the paleo meal company called Power Supply).

Maybe I need to add a fruit to each meal.

Thanks.

I felt hungry between meals until I started really adding much more veggies, like at least 2 to sometimes 3 cups! Part of the snacking problem was mental for me as well but I think if you add in much more veggies with each meal you won't feel hungry try it!